Microsoft, who we assume are fully staffed by nervous, virginal, Revenge Of The Nerds-type geeks who have hatched a plot to allow them to finally touch some boobs, have worked with researchers from the University of Rochester to develop a protoype bra designed to tackle the weirdly specific problem of emotional over-eating.
The Microsoft’s Secret team outfitted a bra with an array of electronics “to capture heart rate and respiration with an electrocardiogram (EKG) sensor; skin conductance with an electrodermal activity (EDA) sensor; and movement with a 3-axis accelerometer and a 2- axis gyroscope” (Is it just me, or does every piece of technology that comes out nowadays seem to contain a f*cking gyroscope?) which are combined and analysed to give a measurement of the wearer’s mood and stress levels. The bra takes those mood measurement signals from your body, compares them to your physiological state when you found yourself compelled to stress-binge on Twisties in the past, and sends a message to you via your smartphone, reminding you to ease off the snack throttle.
Some limitations of the prototype brassiere include the need to recharge the bra-tteries every three to four hours, as well as the discomfort associated with having the hardware component of an Xbox One strapped to your bust. The research team said using a bra “was ideal because it allowed us to collect EKG [electrocardiogram] near the heart”. For that reason a similar undergarment for men has been more difficult to produce, although you could argue that within a man’s underpants region is exactly where his heart is located.
Via BBC News. Lead Image via University of Rochester
